Albert R. Hunt, Columnist

Political Reformers Have a New Asset: Trump

The causes of good-government advocates always seem hopeless. Until they're not.

September 27, 2017 at 11:30 AM UTC

Albert R. Hunt is a former Bloomberg Opinion columnist. He was the executive editor of Bloomberg News, before which he was a reporter, bureau chief and executive Washington editor at the Wall Street Journal.

Reformers' poster president.
Photographer: Don Emmert/Getty Images

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Political reformers in Washington appreciate three realities: Patience is a necessity, incumbent politicians don't like change, and, if the opportunity strikes, you'd better be ready (unlike the Republicans on health care this year).

Those will be the messages of a major effort launched on Wednesday morning at the Brookings Institution. The focus will be on campaign-finance reforms, including full disclosure of political contributions, and changes in the system for drawing congressional districts. Other goals include expanded voting rights and stronger ethics rules.